I think for a lot of people the fact of having two people commuting possibly two different ways can lower the value of trying to locate by one of the workplaces, but it can help. By happenstance, my husband and I live very close to my work, so I can walk or bike to work, while he takes the car. Luckily for us (living in a very sprawled city), his job isn’t a long drive, but being close to one job means that we only need to own one car.
I suspect that in the country where a small commute is still a long way without a car, it might not be applicable, but that’s one benefit for city-dwelling couples.

As far what to do with this information, that was entirely her choice. They decided what they could afford, what type of car they needed, and how new they wanted. They did call me from the dealership to ask me to do some online research during this process while they were negotiating. Overall I think they made a really smart choice, though it is not the one I expected.

I wholeheartedly agree it is a good idea not to offer unsolicited advice to adult kids. It is rarely appreciated.

They may have good reasons for not wanting to move. But it struck me as very strange that Trent’s example of moving closer to your workplace was about moving closer to *his* old workplace, where he doesn’t work anymore, rather than moving closer to Sarah’s workplace, where she still does work.

Johanna’s point actually makes more sense because of the infamous country house. Unless it’s further away, of course.

I’m going through that decision process and dilemma with a 2 hour daily commute that I actually don’t mind since I take public transportation. It provides an opportunity to unwind which I like (just not so much of it) since I’m a single parent and have to hit the ground running when I get home and don’t have a “semi-house-husband” like Sarah does.

If there’s the intent for the Hamm family to move to the country within the next few years, it would be financially foolish to go through the hassle and expense of moving. It’s also possible that housing costs are higher close to her workplace – that’s definitely the case for me. Add in uprooting your kids from their school and neighbourhood and there’s no cut and dried answers.

There are benefits to having a short commute that go beyond paying less for gas. There’s more free time, and less stress. Trent often talks about how “family time” spent with his children is the most valuable thing in the world for him. What’s family time worth for Sarah? More than nothing, I’d guess.

But I’m only saying this because I hate all men, apparently.

My daughter had been driving a Jeep Liberty for a 50-mile round-trip commute for a low-paying job. We had previously figured despite the gas, she was still coming out ahead by working at this job she loved. We also thought she could not afford a newer car. However when we began discussing whether she should trade in her jeep, and I researched most economical cars, I learned the IRS now figures it costs 55 cents per mile to drive a car, on average. I initially felt this was an over estimation… until I saw all those repairs. AAA has a chart that breaks this down more by car type. We started crunching numbers in her specific situation and feel that 45 cents was closer to right for her older jeep. Basically, the newer your car, the higher your per-mile depreciation rate… older cars have a lower depreciation rate, but more repairs. Bigger vehicles cost much more per mile to drive.
To figure a more precise per-mile number for my daughter’s jeep we had to figure depreciation rate by considering what she paid for the jeepr and the current blue book value. We took the difference, and divided by the miles she drove since she owned it and came up with a 10-cent per mile depreciation rate. Then we added in repairs she paid, insurance, tires and so on.
We also figured that if she switched from an 18 mpg car to a 30 mpg car, she would save about $100 a month on commuting alone. She traded in her jeep for a year-old Kia Soul, which still has 70,000 miles on the warranty. (She has two little kids, so needed the roominess.) Her monthly payment is about $200 a month. She will more than break even on gas and short-term lack of repairs.
But in looking at her distance for commuting and how many miles she actually drove since she owned her jeep, we found only half was commuting to work. A high percentage of the rest was for social reasons, going to yard sales, and errands. A large percentage of these non-commuting miles could have been avoided. She knew the gas cost of driving to visit friends, but had not been thinking she was “using up” her car at a faster rate.
Gas is the smaller portion of the total cost of driving. I worked out the true cost of driving various places she tends to drive. This exercise is useful to understand the true cost of getting places. This alone is a deterrent for driving.
Where we live, most good jobs are at least a 40-mile round-trip commute. It is a long shot to find a job significantly closer, but she is now watching for openings.

Don’t move to be closer to your workplace unless you love your job and wouldn’t be happy anywhere else.

Don’t move to be closer to your workplace unless you will at least break even after factoring in moving costs.

We get better gas mileage by not driving aggressively and by not speeding. Living in California where the prices are usually at least $0.75 more than the rest of the country will do that for you. Our gas for the past month has been right around $4/gallon & now well over that.